Collateral Damage
by runaway00
Summary: The Hypnobrai have been locked away in their Tomb for decades, struggling to survive with a dwindling supply of prey. One snake wants to serve his tribe but he can't help but fall for her. They always said Serpentine are different from humans...Then why is he sticking his snout into places where it doesn't belong? Maybe someday he'll learn his lesson, or maybe it'll come at a cost.
1. Prologue

**==Hi, everyone! I hope I have surprised you all! I have actually not graduated yet, but I've been messing around with writing on my phone and got to thinking about Collapse into Caliginosity (my other story.) One of my goals was to tell the backstory of my subplot characters as their current story went along, but after critically thinking, I found that it would be too hard to do that, so I decided to expand the details and just give them their own story that'll spill into their current one! If you are a new reader, welcome! I hope the content of this story makes you want to go check out my other story to see what is going on. Just to let you all know, this story will probably be short, but I do want to enjoy it while it last. This first post is also pretty short, but I'll do my best to get a considerable amount of content out. I still want to work out some details, but I feel like I have a good plan in store.==**

New World Sound & Thomas Newson - "Flute"

 **Collateral Damage**

 **Prologue**

 _She traversed the steep, snowy_ incline with huffing breaths. Some steps left her knee-deep in the frozen matter, but she persisted to the top of the mountain, armed with a Sacred Flute. The ends of her wavy blonde hair were clumped together because of the bone-chilling wind that repeatedly whipped her like a slave. Though in pain, her focus was finding what was waiting for her. The others scattered the land of Ninjago in search of the Serpentine Tribes. Now it was her turn to find hers: the Hypnobrai Tribe.

Their species originated from this very region of Glacier Barrens. Wu and Garmadon, the sons of the First Spinjitzu Master, told her about the Tombs that each tribe used as a shelter. There was a way to lock them up with the Serpentine inside. If the other Elemental Masters succeeded, then it was up to her to end the Serpentine War by locking away the last tribe that was left. So many people had died in the hands of Serpentine. Putting an end to it all would bring world peace, and she would be allowed to return to her husband and plan their honeymoon!

Coming over the curve of the slope, Babs, the Elemental Master of Lightning, clad in her blue garments complete with subtle accents of lightning bolts, was met with the unsuspecting Hypnobrai Tribe. They were the species with blue scales and large crimson eyes that they used for hypnotizing their enemies. The variety of patterns in yellow-and-black scales on their fronts and backs mesmerized her. No pattern was the same, regardless of sex. Looking at their body shapes, Babs recognized males from females. Males were designed to hold weight on their shoulders while females held weight on their hips. In other words, their body shapes mirrored those of humans exactly. It was a mysterious recollection.

Babs watched the docile monsters socialize with each other. Many were warriors planning the next attack, but others were gathered with their mates or families. One particular couple swung their one youngling back and forth by each taking a hand and initiating laughter. It was a heartwarming sight, but she knew what she had to do, and for a moment, she was actually sad. Humans and Serpentine were different in their own ways, but they were also similar when it came to love. Witnessing the interactions among the Hypnobrai made Babs wonder if locking them away was the true solution to the Serpentine War. These walking reptiles would be trapped with no food or water forever. It was genocide...but she had to do it for Ninjago.

Standing up in full view, Babs put the Sacred Flute to her lips and began to play a melodious tune. Every hypnobrai abruptly looked in her direction. Their hands shot up to their ears as the sound of the wooden instrument brought pain to their senses. Pained wails and screams rang out from adults and younglings. Babs squeezed her eyes shut. She couldn't bear to see the young ones suffer like this.

When silence from the Hypnobrai commenced, Babs opened her eyes. They all stood still under control of the notes. She then changed it like Wu taught her and watched as they started marching toward the open Tomb that was merely a hole in the mountain. When every single one of them were inside, Babs stood at the top. The hypnobrai closest to her had a thick, muscular tail and a golden staff in his hand. She stood face-to-face with the General. He was the snake who commanded his warriors to murder. Now he was under her control.

Rigidly, Babs stopped playing the Flute. The Serpentine suddenly snapped out of their trance with confused hisses and expressions. She then pulled the lever next to her. The ground trembled as the Tomb closed up. Hypnobrai screamed again as they realized what was happening to them. They wouldn't be able to get out.

She made eye contact with the General. There was nothing he could do to save his tribe. All he could do was gaze into the electrifying blue eyes of the Elemental Master until the outside world was separated from them for eternity.

 **There is a reason why I chose Jay's mother to be the one to lock them away...And you'll find out why if you read my other story ;) But other than that, I hope you've enjoyed so far! I already got the first chapter written, but I'm not posting it until I get other things taken care of. Please review!**


	2. Chapter 1: Two Younglings, One Path

**==Hi, everyone! It's been a week. Time to post it. I've been thinking of making this story my "update once a week" one. It sounded pretty reasonable to me. If I miss a week, it's probably because of writer's block or something. If you're wondering if I'm neglecting my other story, I'm not. That next chapter is just super duper long compared to this one. It's almost time for me to be in full swing mode on this site and I cannot wait! I've been focusing on my AP tests and graduation lately. Until then, I'm tied down. But it's getting close!==**

Sander van Doorn - "No Words" feat. Belle Humble

 _Sometimes there are no words left to speak._

 **Collateral Damage**

 **Chapter 1:**

 **Two Younglings, One Path**

 _Deep within the Hypnobrai Tomb,_ snakes were scattered in their nests for the night. Some contained individuals, others contained mates, and more contained families. Not a single creature was awake in the bleak silence that capsuled the Hypnobrai Tribe every day.

One particular nest held expectant parents. The blue Serpentine snuggled intimately with the presence of the severely swollen abdomen obstructing their personal space. It had been more than eight months since they found out about the news of their pregnancy, and their adventure of parenthood was about to begin.

The pregnant female suddenly stirred because of the feeling of a tightness resonating from her uterus. It squeezed harder, causing her to slightly groan.

Her mate immediately awakened in response. "Elapidae?" he whispered, instinctively cradling their unborn youngling.

"It'sss time," she hissed, sitting up in a panic. "I'm not ready. _We're_ not ready, Sssoren."

"Why do you sssay that? We knew it would be time sssoon. Our nessst isss the proper sssize, and Velsssuki knowsss about your conditttion." Soren rested his scaly hand on the center of her back. "It'll be okay."

Elapidae lowered her gaze but didn't protest as he beckoned her to her feet. Her back ached from the weight of her abdomen and her feet were puffy from the pregnancy itself. It was obvious she was physically uncomfortable. With that in mind, the two of them dodged surrounding nests to reach the crevice of the tribe's medicine snake's den. Their nocturnal lenses adjusted to the lack of light along the way.

She suddenly halted as another contraction commenced. Soren pressed her snout against his shoulder to block out her groan. One hypnobrai lifted his head, but they continued walking until the great dark fissure in the wall of ice came into view. The male poked his head inside. "Velsssuki?" he voiced, not wanting to be too loud.

Very slowly, something in a nest rustled and removed itself. He saw how a mound of sleeping Serpentine remained in their place. Eventually, Velsuki, with her glossy yellow-and-black scales stretched by her own pregnancy, met Soren at the entrance of her establishment for medicinal care. "Isss it time?" she sleepily inquired.

"Yesss."

"Come thisss way."

They both entered in past her. Elapidae made her way into an adjoining cavern where an empty nest was placed for patients. Soren momentarily got a closer look at Velsuki's family: Her mate, Morisol, was at the bottom of a tangled cluster of bodies, which was their four sons. The sight was amusing. He clearly wasn't bothered by the weight as long as they didn't squirm.

Velsuki motioned for Soren to join his mate. "Do you think thisss one with be a female?" he quietly asked the medicine snake, looking at her pregnant belly.

"We'll know sssomeday, but not today," she replied. "Pleassse, lay down with Elapidae. My duty isss to deliver your youngling. Yoursss is to be her sssupport."

* * *

It had only been a few short hours since the labor began, but things were moving quickly. Elapidae rapidly inhaled and exhaled because of the excruciating pain in her body. Soren supported her back, trying his best to ease the pressure in her pelvis. Velsuki grabbed more herbs from her supply before positioning herself at Elapidae's feet. "You're doing well," she assured her, meticulously mixing the leaves and stems in her hand. "We'll ssstart pussshesss sssoon."

She relaxed in his arms when the contraction subsided. "I-I need to pusssh," she communicated, the intense pressure still hurting her.

"Not until the next contractttion," Velsuki insisted. "It helpsss move thingsss along."

Soren brushed the back of his fingertips along his mate's snout but was interrupted by the next contraction. She groaned loudly.

"Okay, here we go, Elapidae. Big pusssh," Velsuki coached, applying her handful of smushed herbs to her patient's scales to ease the birthing process. Soren quickly propped her up farther and felt her tense up and bear down. After a few seconds of silence, she exhaled and collapsed against him. "One more time, Elapidae. You're doing very well," Velsuki continued.

She pushed again, but harder. "I AM NEVER DOING THISSS AGAIN, SSSOREN!" she strongly guaranteed.

Although feeling guilty about putting her through this, Soren didn't say anything to let her concentrate on her body.

Elapidae suddenly yelled and groaned, squirming to somewhat find a solution to stop the pain. "Oh!" Velsuki sounded with surprise, launching her hands down to catch something.

Soren looked away. He didn't want to see anything.

"One more big pusssh," Velsuki indicated. Regardless of the absence of a contraction, Elapidae squeezed her abdominal muscles to their limit one final time. Her abdomen seemed to have deflated in the blink of an eye. Soren supported her body weight when she relaxed, but he heard a little hissing sound at the exact same time.

The medicine snake held the youngling against the curve of her chest as she cleared its airways with a stiff stem poking into its nostrils and mouth. She then handed the new mother her offspring and proceeded to use soft leaves to clean off the bodily substances.

The parents watched their youngling breathe its first breaths of air as it complained about its journey into the world. Soren stroked his rough palm across its crinkled head and counted all of its fingers and toes. Nothing was wrong with it. Their youngling was perfect. Its skull would fuse together in some areas and straighten itself after some time, and it would look normal.

"That wasss cccertainly one of the fassstessst birthsss I've had in a while," Velsuki humorously commented. "You did a ssspectacular job, Elapidae."

She conscientiously laid her hands on the youngling she just gave birth to. The last thing she wanted was to do something wrong, but it hissed without faltering like it was supposed to. A sense of needing to provide protection overwhelmed her. This was her offspring. It was so little and vulnerable. She once felt it nudge from time to time, and then felt kicks periodically. Now she could physically touch its thin, fragile scales and cradle it in her arms.

Almost as if it could read her thoughts, the youngling opened its eyes in the darkness, probably unable to make anything out. "Aw, look, Sssoren," Elapidae cooed, rubbing its nose to make it blink with confusion.

Velsuki briefly lifted its leg. "You have a ssson," she translated, nipping the umbilical cord to break it painlessly. "Do you have a name yet?"

Elapidae gazed up at her mate in anticipation. "Gorgan," he concluded.

* * *

The new parents were left alone once everything was cleaned up and settled down. Soren refused to sleep. He wanted Elapidae to rest as he kept an eye on their newborn son.

Gorgan's tiny forked tongue slipped out from between his lips every minute or so. Soren cradled him as he peacefully slept, but it wasn't long until Velsuki's den was full of noise from one of the four rambunctious adolescent males.

"But _I_ want to sssee the youngling!" one of them pleaded.

"The youngling isss sssleeping, Korei," Velsuki groggily reasoned. "You need to sssleep, too."

"But I'm _tired_ of sssleeping!"

"Korei, lay down and go to sssleep," Morisol chimed in.

Soren kept his eye on the opening into the small cavern. He thought Korei, the youngest of his brothers, would come charging in rebelliously, but there was nothing to be seen. In fact, it fell silent throughout the den once more.

He laid back with the undisturbed Gorgan, feeling the lack of sleep pull down on his eyelids.

* * *

When Soren woke up from the sounds of voices again, the first thing he noticed was the absence of Gorgan's weight on his chest. The initial response of panic almost immediately fizzled out of his nerves when he observed Elapidae holding Gorgan instead. Korei was sitting in front of her in the nest, his white nubs for fangs beginning to poke out from his mouth. The little stinker disobeyed his parents, but she didn't seem to be bothered by the company.

"Can I touch him?" Korei politely asked.

"Of courssse you can." She held out the youngling as he reached out and carefully brushed his stubby fingers down his arm. "Hisss name isss Gorgan."

Morisol unexpectedly stuck his cobra-like head through the opening of the cavern. "Korei, what did your mother and I tell you _not_ to do?" he frustratedly questioned.

"He'sss okay, Morisssol," Elapidae assured him. "He'sss about to be a big brother, after all."

Velsuki's mate didn't respond straight away. Instead, he pointed at his eyes before pointing at his son, making him giggle. "If you upssset that youngling-"

"Ugh...Morisssol," Velsuki groaned from the other side.

The joking nature of Morisol suddenly disappeared as he too disappeared. "The youngling isss coming?!" his muffled voice reiterated. He returned to the cavern in a state of controlled panic to snatch Korei. "Trampa, take your brothersss out to play," he enforced to the oldest of his offspring.

Elapidae worriedly gazed at Soren, so he took it upon himself to find out what they should do. He climbed out of the nest and stood at the cavern's opening. "Do we need to leave, Morisssol?" he asked, not taking a look at what was going on.

"No, no!" he reassured him, abruptly pushing past him to gather the same herbs used for Elapidae earlier. "Your mate ssshouldn't be on her feet for a few more hoursss. Don't worry about usss." When he counted the plants and went through his mental list, he reverted around and went to tend to Velsuki.

Soren hesitantly approached Elapidae again. "What do you want to do?"

"Well...if I'm not sssupposssed to be walking yet, then I ssshouldn't be walking," she answered, readjusting her hold on Gorgan.

The sleeping youngling wailed out of the blue, making Elapidae question her innocent decision. When she moved him back, Gorgan continued to complain with his infant sounds. Soren joined in to see if he could help figure out what their son needed to appease him.

"I-I don't know what I did," Elapidae admitted, stressed from no experience as a parent.

"I don't believe you did anything wrong, Love," he reasoned, prodding Gorgan. "We haven't fed him yet...Do you want to try that?"

Gorgan didn't show any signs of calming down as Elapidae gently bounced him. "Pleassse," she replied.

Soren quickly hopped out of the nest and left the cavern to find Velsuki fighting through a powerful contraction in her family's nest with Morisol at her side. He didn't falter in his stride to find the pile of prey somewhere in the Tomb.

The morning sunlight streamed in through thin ice in the tall ceiling, sparking the busy atmosphere of the tribe. A group of warriors in training passed by him to go search for prey. Some nests were occupied with mothers preparing their younglings for the day, and one mother noticed he was out and about by himself.

"Sssoren! How isss Elapidae?" she called, wrestling with her youngling to sit still.

"Ssshe isss doing well. We had our youngling thisss morning," he explained.

"That'sss wonderful newsss!"

"What'sss thisss I hear?" another hypnobrai questioned.

Soren glanced to see the young General Slithraa making his way to a place where warriors were waiting for a directive. His majestic yellow-and-black scales could catch the attention of any serpent who passed him. One hand held his snake-like golden staff as it displayed an ancient blue stone in its fanged mouth. What made this hypnobrai stand out among the rest was the thick, muscular tail that trailed behind him wherever he went. It was the identifying trait of the General of any Serpentine tribe. "General Ssslithraa," he respectively acknowledged. "My mate gave birth to our ssson thisss morning."

"A promisssing omen, I mussst sssay," he happily replied, raising his golden staff.

"Velsssuki isss alssso giving birth to her youngling asss we ssspeak."

He momentarily scratched at his broad fangs that hung from beneath his lip. "I will make a visssit thisss evening to greet the newessst membersss of our tribe," he promised, bowing his head. "Carry on, Sssoren."

"Yesss, General." When he slithered away, Soren traveled deeper into the Tomb until he came across the decent stock of freshly-killed prey. He picked a tiny mouse for Gorgan to chew on and a couple of plump rats for himself and Elapidae. His forked tongue flapped against his lips at the mouth-watering scent coming from their fur.

Holding each by the tail, he trotted back to Velsuki's den. The medicine snake still hadn't given birth yet, but her loud groans made it clear that it would probably be awhile compared to how fast Gorgan came.

Elapidae was relieved when Soren came in with the prey. "He ssstill hasssn't calmed down," she pointed out, feeling hopeless.

"Don't worry. I got him a moussse," he soothed, putting down the rats. When Gorgan was settled down onto the thin branches of the nest, Soren dangled the white mouse over his nose. His pitiful wails quieted when the tiny creature was placed in his mouth. Before their very eyes, he began to chew with his sharp microscopic teeth. "All better?" Soren cooed, rubbing his son's belly.

Elapidae leaned her head against her mate's. "Are you ready to do thisss?" she wondered.

The male held her scaly hand as he gazed down at the innocent youngling. "I've been ready."

* * *

Gorgan fell back asleep after consuming his mouse, leaving Soren and Elapidae time to themselves. Velsuki's yelps and groans were background noise as they intimately laid in the nest together. Elapidae picked at the overstretched scales beginning to flake off her abdomen. Her body would look normal again in a few days time, but the damaged scales showed how pregnancy affected it.

"Velsssuki sssaid you would molt your ssscalesss sssoon," Soren shared.

"I know...but I ssstill don't feel-"

"AH!" Velsuki screamed.

Silence followed. Soren and Elapidae listened carefully. Did she give birth? Where were the sounds of the new youngling? Soren curiously got up and poked his head into the den. Morisol and Velsuki were in the nest, not exchanging words.

"Did it happen?" Soren asked, feeling his heart sink.

Morisol gazed over. "I...I have a daughter!" he cheered, almost in disbelief.

Soren took a closer look. Velsuki was cradling the precious youngling underneath her chin as it quietly hissed.

* * *

Every hypnobrai gathered in the most expansive area of the Tomb for the routine announcements. Soren and Elapidae stood in the background with Morisol, Velsuki, and their four sons. The two newest members of the Hypnobrai Tribe both peacefully slept in the arms of their mothers. A ritual was underway to recognize the births. Everyone had seen it before. Slithraa stood in front of a mysterious pool of water when he spoke.

"It hasss been a promisssing week for the tribe," he hissed. "Prey hasss been plentiful, and two younglingsss have been born."

All who could hear the news let out an uproar of applause and cheers in celebration. Around that same time, Slithraa approached the pair of parents and took both younglings in each arm. "Gorgan isss of Sssoren and Elapidae. May he grow to be a fine warrior sssomeday," he prophesied, resting the now awake infant into the shallow pool of icy water. "Cleo isss of Morisssol and Velsssuki. May ssshe be able to compete with her brothersss when the time comesss." He also settled Cleo into the pool, where her eyes widened in surprise and her little arms jolted upwards due to the sudden temperature change. Morisol and Velsuki found humor in their daughter's reaction to the ritual.

Both younglings were simultaneously pulled out when additional celebrating summoned. As the water droplets fell from their scales, both Gorgan and Cleo curiously glanced around to see the blurry walls of the Tomb like any youngling their age would do. They shared the same birthday, the same birthplace, but little did they know that their futures would be even more intertwined than that.

 **Questions? Thoughts? Comments? Let me know! I loved making this chapter :) Thank you RandomDragon2.0, The Mayor of Ninjago City, and Steampunk Wilson for your kind reviews!**

RandomDragon2.0 \- Here's more! ;)

The Mayor of Ninjago City \- Hi! I am, too :D

Steampunk Wilson \- I'm glad you enjoyed, but unfortunately, Jay's mother will not be coming back in this story :( Feel free to stick around more, though!


	3. Chapter 2: Runt Of the Litter

**==Hi, everyone! I know I am posting this a day early, but my weekend is going to be super busy so I thought that it couldn't hurt. It's been ready for a few days, anyway XD To be honest, I don't really know what to do for the next chapter, but I don't want it to be major, anyway. If anyone wants to read about anything specific while Gorgan is a toddler, I'm more than happy to write it for you! I just need to know before I move on to the next phase of life.==**

Martin Garrix - "Forbidden Voices"

 **Collateral Damage**

 **Chapter 2:**

 **Runt Of the Litter**

 _The family of three stayed_ close at night. They were bunched together in the nest as a single unmoving unit. Gorgan was sandwiched in the middle, but he was more than comfortable. His mother snuggled him, and his father embraced her. There was never a discussion about adding a new member in the three years since the birth of their son, so Gorgan was the only one they had to cuddle. Nothing could have been better for the time being...Well, that was until the brink of dawn.

At the brink of dawn, Gorgan awakened. The Tomb was cold and somewhat dim. The sun hadn't yet broken through the thin sheets of ice in the unreachable ceiling, so naturally, Gorgan crawled out from Elapidae's arms. His parents might have not been ready to face the day yet, but he sure was.

This would've been the first time the conservative youngling ventured out by himself. Elapidae was always watching over him carefully wherever he went. She would barely let him do anything! Now that he was alone, he wanted to explore!

The independent reptilian toddler crawled to the edge of the nest. He knew the walls were taller than him, but he was more than determined to escape.

Soren and Elapidae were in deep sleep. When their son rustled against the twigs, they didn't stir at all.

Little Gorgan wedged his toes between the wooden fibers, grasped the prickly rim, and tried to pull himself over. His arms strained with the elevation...until his feet unexpectedly popped out and all his weight fell forward. The youngling did a complete somersault over the edge of the nest, head over heels, and landed flat on his back against the ice-covered floor of the cave.

Soren and Elapidae woke up because of the sound of him wailing in pain, but they couldn't find him. They confusingly noticed how the pocket they made for him was empty. Soren quickly looked over the edge to see Gorgan laying there helplessly. How he even got there was beyond him. So he picked the youngling back up and soothed him so that he would no longer disturb their neighbors.

* * *

The next morning, Gorgan woke up before his parents again. It was almost the exact same kind of situation, except a few sunrays were breaking through the ice. He tried wriggling from his mother's arms, but she tightened her hold and opened her eyes. "No, Gorgan," she groggily enforced, her eyes fluttering shut again.

The obedient youngling didn't move again. He was stopped before he even started.

* * *

When the tribe bustled with activity for the day, Soren said goodbye to his mate and offspring. He had to tend to his warrior duties for a few hours, but it was always the last thing Gorgan wanted him to do. He wailed and clung to him, not understanding why his father had to leave once again. His young mind thought he was leaving them forever, regardless of the continuous returns day be day.

"I mussst go now," Soren stated, giving his son one last squeeze.

"No!" Gorgan fought, doing everything in his power to hold on to him.

He chuckled and plucked his arms off his body. "Yesss. I will return sssoon," he persisted, passing Elapidae the squirming youngling. "Be good to your mother."

Gorgan cried louder at the sight of Soren walking away to join his fellow warriors. Elapidae sat down with him in her lap, using her skills as a mother to get him to stop kicking and wailing. "He will come back, little Gorgan," she soothed, rocking him back and forth as she tightly embraced him.

"Come back!" his desperately begged as Soren was greeted and followed the other males and females.

"Gorgan," she hissed, turning him around so that his face could bury into her chest. Her tender hands stroked him comfortably down his back and around his serpent head. "He isssn't leaving usss," she finalized as she nuzzled him.

His upset wails slowly quieted because of how secure Elapidae made him feel. The youngling eventually wrapped his little arms around his mother to fight his mental loneliness.

"Tell me, my ssson," she began, pulling him back to look into his defeated crimson eyes. "Why have you been trying to essscape the nessst recccently?"

Gorgan didn't say anything when he broke eye contact.

Her hand brushed the side of his snout. "You are too young to be out of the nessst by yourssself. You know that."

"But I don't like the nessst," he comaplained, dramatically crossing his arms in defiance.

"You'll be able to leave the nessst when you get bigger, but for now, you mussst ssstay with me."

He grimaced, unhappy with his current circumstances. Just because he wasn't allowed to leave didn't mean he had to listen. He would get out of here if it was the last thing he did!

* * *

On the third morning, Gorgan laid in the arms of his mother in silence. He had been awake for awhile, but he wasn't sure when to make his move.

The situation was slightly different this time; the cave was completely dark and colder than usual. What he didn't know was that a blizzard ravaged the outside of the Tomb, blocking out the typical morning sun. Naturally, the Hypnobrai stayed asleep. The sun was their clock. Without it, they couldn't tell time. Their bodies had acclimated to the presence of the fuzzy rays after decades of adaptation.

So without it, Gorgan thought he had woke up a lot earlier than he had been. His parents' breaths were slow and steady. They were dead asleep compared to the two previous nights.

The devious youngling cautiously slipped away from Elapidae. He watched her face to see if her eyes would open, but she never moved or reacted. Gorgan came face to face with the wall that had originally stopped him from getting out in the first place. He could recall what had happened to him before, so he knew he had to be more careful.

Kind of like a ladder, Gorgan stuck his toes between the twigs of the wall while also gripping the top rim. Instead of pulling, he applied pressure to his foot to lift himself. His other foot dug between the twigs, allowing his other foot to come out and stick back in at a higher place. He did this until his legs reached the top, where he somehow knew he had to climb over and do the same thing going down.

His tiny foot made it to the other side so it could dig into the outside wall of the nest. Once he felt completely supported, he slid his other leg over the edge and lowered himself until his free foot holstered itself back into the wall. Eventually, he stepped onto the cold floor and looked around the dark cave. There were no noises from inside the nest, or, in fact, from any nests surrounding him.

His crimson lenses adjusted to bring in more invisible light, but he was suddenly stricken with apprehension. It was so quiet and eerie. The nests were taller than he was, and there were so many of them. If he wandered away, it would be impossible to find his way back.

The thought of his mother came to mind. She was right. He was too young for this. But if he climbed back into the nest, he would probably wake them up and get in trouble. That was the last thing he wanted, so he walked away. He couldn't get in trouble if they didn't find him!

Nest after nest after nest, he got farther away from his sleeping parents. He wasn't in any hurry; he just wanted to stop feeling like he was aimlessly going in circles. Whenever his parents stood with him in their arms, he was able to see the cave from their perspective. There was much more than these nests; there were towering curved walls that had jagged patterns along the ice that layered them. The older Hypnobrai would also filter in and out of the area through a massive natural opening. Gorgan certainly hadn't ever gone that far in the Tomb, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to do that right now, either.

At one point, he followed a nest around its circumference and found that it was one on the outside, meaning there wasn't another nest waiting for him on the other side. A good ways out was one of the cave walls. In it was a large dark fissure that got slimmer as it crawled up the ice. The sight was something of nightmares for younglings Gorgan's age, but because it was silent, he was merely curious. If he couldn't hear the monster, then there probably wasn't a monster at all.

So he waddled over until he stood at the threshold of the fissure. It was an opening...his birthplace. He didn't know this, of course, but it was true. Gorgan had found Velsuki's medicine den.

The inside of it was even more obscure than the rest of the Tomb. When he stepped in, it was difficult to see anything at all. No heat signatures lightened through his reptilian lenses. He almost thought it was empty.

As soon as he turned around to leave, something rustled. The little youngling recognized the sound to be scales against the twigs of a nest and stopped. Someone lived in here?

Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, Gorgan saw the top of a little head pop up from nowhere. The nest was completely invisible to him, but there was no denying that someone saw him. Then just like he did, the hypnobrai youngling climbed over the wall of the nest and landed on the ground without a problem. This youngling was much better at it than Gorgan was.

He stared in awe. He'd never met another youngling before. He'd only seen them being carried around by their parents.

"Help?" she immediately inquired.

"Huh?" he confusingly sounded.

"My mother isss the healing sssnake," she explained. "Do you need help?"

"No. I'm exploring."

"Where?"

"Everywhere!"

"Ssshh..." she quieted him, pointing at the nest she came from. "They're sssleeping."

"Who?"

"My mother, father, and brothersss."

"Oh. I don't have sssiblingsss."

"Isss that why you're by yourssself?"

He nodded. "My parentsss are sssleeping ssstill."

"Then I'll explore with you," she offered, taking his hand and leading him away from the nest. "Our den isss huge," she whispered, taking him to a smaller area. "Thisss isss where the patttientsss go and where my mother keepsss her herbsss."

Gorgan felt another nest with his fingertips.

"My mother sssaysss all younglingsss are born in here, except for my brothersss and me. We were born in our own nessst."

"What about me?"

"Yesss. But sssick Ssserpentine alssso ssstay in there." She started climbing the nest again to get inside of it. "I like to hide from my father in here. It'sss fun," she claimed. When she made it over, Gorgan didn't move. He didn't want to climb again. He wasn't good at it.

"Come on," she urged, pulling herself over to look down at him.

"I don't like to climb."

"Why?"

"I fall."

"I'll help you." Her arms dangled over the edge, reaching for him. He wasn't sure at first, but she insisted. "You won't fall."

After a moment, he stepped forward and began digging into the fibers of the nest. When he got close enough, he took her hands and felt her pull. He went limp with the expectation that she was strong enough to do it herself.

"Ussse your feet," she groaned, straining to support his body weight.

He dug his feet back into the nest and kept climbing until his body hung over the other side. When she let go, he was allowed to find his own way down until they were both situated.

"Sssee? You didn't fall."

Footsteps suddenly entered the vicinity, causing the female youngling to duck and cover. Gorgan was frozen. He had no idea what to do or what was happening. "Cleo, why are out of the nessst?" a voice rasped.

The breath got caught in Gorgan's trachea. It was her mother. He just knew it.

"Cleo." Hands suddenly grabbed Gorgan and lifted him, sending terrified impulses down his body. The adult hypnobrai held him against her chest. "You cannot be in here by yourssself," she sterny hissed, turning him around.

Gorgan came face to face with the medicine snake who thought he was her daughter. Once she saw who he wasn't, she was dumbfounded.

The other youngling shuffled in the nest to stand up. Velsuki looked down at her. "Cleo? Who isss your little friend here?"

She shrugged.

Velsuki was so confused. Who was this youngling, and why was he in her den by himself? She quickly turned him around again to gaze at the pattern of scales on his back. "Ah, I know you," she voiced. "Why are you away from your parentsss, Gorgan?"

Gorgan blinked, petrified. How in the world did she know his name?

"He wasss exploring," Cleo answered for him.

"Oh? And I take it you were joining him?"

"I wasssn't sssleeping anymore."

"That'sss not an excussse. You both ssshouldn't be out on your own. You're too young. Isss that what your mother tellsss you, Gorgan?"

Gorgan unblinkingly stared with wide eyes, but he briskly nodded.

"Then I have to take you back before your parentsss wake up and wonder where you went." Before either youngling could protest, Velsuki reached down and lifted her daughter from the nest just to take her to the other one and leave her there. She didn't try to get out again. Instead, she just sat there. Gorgan helplessly watched over Velsuki's shoulder as his new friend faded away in the darkness with the growing distance between them.

The medicine snake unhurriedly walked around many nests to return him. It was almost as if she knew exactly where he belonged.

Eventually, she turned him around with her hands underneath his armpits and lowered him into the nest that had his still sleeping parents. Neither of them had moved since Gorgan escaped.

When he turned around to face her, she pressed her finger to her cold lips to indicate silence from him. Then she gently patted his head and walked away from him.

As soon as she went out of sight, Gorgan got back up and climbed the wall again, but only until his head could see over the edge. He then watched her approach that great fissure in the wall, bending over to enter in and rejoin her family.

He had been caught in the act, but she just returned him as if nothing happened.

 **Okay, so I'm pretty sure this upcoming week will be the first week I'll be back on track with writing consistently! Also, I just realized I never acknowledged the people who followed and favorited this story so far...SORRY! Thank you Moore98Luke, RandomDragon2.0, AuroraRain18, and The Mayor of Ninjago City for supporting this sprouting story. It means a lot to me :)**


	4. Chapter 3: Not So Playful Play Date

**==Hi, everyone! I'm really sorry that I missed an update on Saturday. It was a holiday weekend and we had family make a surprise visit, so I decided to take the time to spend time with them. But I'm back with a new chapter. It's a little bit shorter than they have been recently, but there just wasn't much more I wanted to introduce this time around. We definitely need to start developing the storyline, though, so I say after this we start moving things along. I want to explore the depths of the Hypnobrai Tomb eventually and start getting the characters into conflict as they grow up. Once again, this story will be a lot shorter than Collapse into Caliginosity, and the amount of conflict will be incomparable, too, but there is an agenda I want to follow and that includes getting the main ideas written to explain the backstory of these two Serpentine :) I hope that plan can be acceptable to you all as readers!==**

San Holo - "Light"

 _Even if it makes me blind, I just wanna see the light. Breathing, leave it all behind. I just wanna see the light._

 **Collateral Damage**

 **Chapter 3:**

 **Not So Playful Play Date**

 _Elapidae watched her mate walk_ away from the nest as she kept a constricting hold on her youngling. "No!" Gorgan begged, reaching as far as he could. "Don't leave me!"

"He'sss coming back, ssson," she soothed, turning him around so she could snuggle him lovingly. "You know he alwaysss comesss back."

Gorgan wailed until his mother's tender touches calmed him down like they usually did. The feeling of her glossy scales against his made him feel at ease. She took care of him like a guardian was supposed to. So when she sat down with him in her lap, she let him cling onto her as she cleaned him up for the day.

"We're leaving the nessst today," she hissed, hopeful for an excited reaction.

Her words made him open his eyes and remember earlier this very morning. He had gone to the mysterious dark cave and found that female youngling. They were having plenty of fun before her mother arrived and returned him to his rightful nest. After that, he didn't know what happened to her...Cleo. She was one of the only other younglings he'd ever encountered. Any others were the offspring of Elapidae's friends. That was one of the only reasons why he ever left the nest...Uh, oh.

"Your friend Ssskalesss hasss been wanting to play with you again," Elapidae continued, pulling him away from her so she could rub a speck of dirt from his snout.

"No, Mother!" he protested. "He'sss mean!"

She chuckled. "Ssskalesss jussst enjoysss roughhousssing. You will, too, sssomeday." Then she stood up with Gorgan in her arms, holding him against her shoulder.

Watching the nest be left behind, Gorgan internally dreaded spending time with Skales. He liked to grab and pull at Gorgan with the intention of just playing, but it just hurt when he did that.

Being unusually quiet, Gorgan watched the fissure in the Tomb's wall come into view. And as it got smaller and smaller in sight, the female youngling came running out with her older brothers right on her case. Gorgan gasped. "Mother!"

"What?" Elapidae replied, stopping.

"I want to play with her!"

She met her son's eye. "With who?"

"Cleo."

Elapidae turned around to see the little youngling be the center of attention among her brothers. Velsuki and Morisol sat down against the wall to keep an eye on them all. "How do you know who Cleo isss?"

Gorgan's lenses widened. He just accidentally revealed his secret of sneaking out of the nest.

"Well, I can't jussst have Morisssol and Velsssuki watch you for me. You can play with Cleo another time."

"But-"

"Ssshh."

Continuing the walk to Skales' nest, Gorgan was left to see Cleo get smaller and smaller against his will. He wanted to play with her again, but how could he convince his mother to make that possible?

* * *

At the nest, Elapidae settled her offspring down next to the other youngling. Skales was a little bit older and bigger than Gorgan, but his behavior was still just as vibrant and young. The moment Elapidae sat on the other end with his mother, Skales reached for Gorgan's head and pulled against its odd shape. Gorgan whined and tried to fight his hold, but Skales was stronger than he was.

"Ssskalesss," his mother warned him. "Remember what we talked about." Skales stopped what he was doing and let go of Gorgan...only to tackle him. Elapidae and her friend laughed as Gorgan was pinned down and sat on. Skales's mother reached over and pulled her son away so that Gorgan could be freed from the roughhousing. "You mussst lisssttten to me," his mother reprimanded, looking him straight in the eye.

In his state of minor freedom, Gorgan sat up with the intention of being left alone, but when he gazed up at the two adults, he witnessed Skales crawling off his mother's lap in pursuit of him. He could just feel his head being grabbed again even before it happened. To get away, Gorgan got to his feet and found the wall of the nest. "Gorgan?" Elapidae began. "He jussst wantsss to play."

The poor youngling didn't care about what everyone else told him. Skales was mean, and he was the one taking the brunt of it all. So he turned around and scaled the wall again, trying his best not to fall. He did it faster than before, almost astonishing his own mother by his amount of nimbleness. They watched him maneuver up and over until he abruptly disappeared.

"Gorgan!" she nervously exclaimed, getting up just to see him waddling away at high speed.

The rebellious youngling didn't look back. Instead, he looked ahead. It was an open area where he had a full view of Cleo being pulled around playfully by her brothers. All he really wanted was to see her again, even if it was only for a second. But he had to be quick. Elapidae was hot on his trail, probably wanting to snatch him up and take him back.

So he went as fast as he could until he made it. Morisol and Velsuki watched as he interrupted their children's fun by hugging their surprised daughter. They both looked at each other, humorously hissing at the occurrence. Velsuki knew who it was immediately, but Cleo was caught off guard. She'd met Gorgan only once, but she still hugged him back.

"Gorgan!" Elapidae called, approaching him.

He suddenly let go of Cleo and dashed away from his mother to not be caught. "Run, Gorgan, run!" Velsuki encouraged him.

"No, don't run," his mother diverted, increasing her pace for a moment so that she could at last pick up her youngling.

"No!" Gorgan squeaked, pushing against her arms.

"Ssstop," she hissed, reverting around to return him to the play date.

"Are you having trouble, Elapidae?" Marisol inquired.

"It'sss fine, Morisssol. I'm sssorry to disssturb your family," she insisted, walking past them all with Gorgan squirming with all his might.

"Isss that your friend, Cleo?" he asked her.

She looked at him with her crimson eyes glistening in the dimness. "I don't know."

"You went exploring with him thisss morning, remember?" Velsuki reminded her.

Her face suddenly lightened happily. She did remember him!

"Exploring? When?" Morisol questioned, confused.

"Elapidae doesssn't know, but Gorgan sssnuck out and found our den. I returned him without her knowing."

"Why?"

"Becaussse he wasssn't doing anything wrong. Cleo wasss jussst playing with him. Sssurely you remember playing with me when we were younglingsss, too."

He bumped his head against hers affectionately. "How could I forget?"

 **Short and sweet this time around. The next one should be longer. Thank you AuroraRain18, The Mayor Of Ninjago City, and RandomDragon2.0 for reviewing the last chapter! I will have another one ready next Saturday :)**


	5. Chapter 4: Burrow

**==Hi, everyone! I'm back with a new chapter that I'm quite satisfied with. I really just wanted to give you all a vivid visual of the inside of the Hypnobrai Tomb this time around, so might as well expose a relationship or two along the way! I had planned to get three chapters written for today but of course I got sidetracked with SOMETHING. And now I'm leaving for a two-week vacation so no updates whatsoever until I get back. I'll do my best to write and play catch up between now and then. Bye!==**

Avicii - "The Days" feat. Robbie Williams

 _These are the days we've been waiting for. Neither of us knows what's in store. You just roll your window down and place your bets. These are the days we won't regret. These are the days we'll never forget._

 **Collateral Damage**

 **Chapter 4:**

 **Burrow**

 _Soren was the first to_ awaken in his family. As his eyelids slid open to a new day, he felt his sleeping mate and son steadily breathe in his arms. They were beautiful together; it was the perfect scenario nature had intended. Slowly, he stroked his palm across her back, feeling her shoulder blades and spine. She slightly twitched in response and awakened as well. Her pink tongue hissed out from between her lips as she looked down at their sleeping offspring.

He rubbed his snout against hers. They both knew today was special. Gorgan's least favorite part of the day was saying goodbye to Soren, but he didn't have to today. The two parents have been keeping this secret from their son for a few days now.

Earlier this week, before Soren could depart from his warrior duties, General Slithraa made the announcement that any youngling who stayed in their nest with their mother could come along with their father on this very day to see every part of the Tomb. It was important for Gorgan and other younglings his age to start learning about their home. In a few years, he would begin to learn important stories about the history of the Serpentine and how their tribe ended up trapped forever. But the first step was knowing every inch of their surroundings.

Not only was it a time of learning for the younglings, but it was a day to bond with their fathers. Soren always played and wrestled with Gorgan while Elapidae watched in amusement, but this would be the first time he and Gorgan went on an adventure together. The most Gorgan had seen of the Tomb thus far was where Hypnobrai bathed, emptied their bowels, and molted their scales. Other than that, he had been sheltered in the one nesting area his entire life.

Elapidae's lips curved upward against the back of her slender white fangs. Their son was still fast asleep in his own mental realm of dreams. Nests were beginning to have movement around them. He would have to wake up soon!

Soren reached down with his snout to touch Gorgan's little head. When his lips pressed against his glossy scales, he blew air against him until it was forced out between a microscopic space, creating a loud, funny sound that made him and his mate laugh. Gorgan, however, annoyingly pushed Soren's head away to be left alone.

"Wake up, Gorgan," he whispered, snuggling him against his will. "It'sss time for me Tom leave."

Gorgan suddenly rolled over in disbelief. "No!" he wailed, immediately latching onto him.

Elapidae tilted her head, seeing through his practical joke. He would receive the same upset reaction only to reveal that there wouldn't be a goodbye at all. It was mean to do, but in the end, Gorgan would be relieved.

"Yesss, I mussst go," Soren persisted, sitting up with Gorgan completely swaddled in his embrace.

"No! Don't leave me!"

Elapidae gave him a look of warning. She dealt with this every morning. Enough already.

"Hmm...Okay. I won't leave without you," he unexpectedly agreed, prying Gorgan off him so he could sit in his lap.

The youngling looked conflicted. Was his father lying to him or being serious?

"How about you accompany me today?"

"...Really?"

Soren smiled and stroked his head. "Of courssse."

"What will we do?"

"Well, we can go exploring and sssee all the placccesss the Tomb hasss to offer. Sssound fun?"

"Isss it big?"

"Very big. There'sss a lot that you have yet to feassst your eyesss on."

"I want to go!"

He chuckled and got to his feet with Gorgan in his arms. A small group of Hypnobrai warriors was already gathering at the entrance of the nesting area. One, in particular, held his son, Skales, on his shoulders.

"Behave yourself," Elapidae told her son. "I love you."

"Enjoy your day off," Soren alleviated, holding her hand and nuzzling the side of her face before walking away.

She watched them go off far enough so that she could lay back down to get more sleep.

Gorgan laughed as Soren spun them both around and then swung him onto his shoulders. He happily held onto his father's head to keep his balance, but Soren kept his hands on his feet to be safe. Today was going to be an enjoyable and heartwarming memory Gorgan would carry with him for the rest of his life.

"How many younglingsss?" an empty-handed warrior asked as Soren's approached.

It was only Skales and Gorgan by the looks of it, so Soren opened his mouth to answer.

"Three," another voice answered for him.

When he turned to see who snuck up behind him, Gorgan beat him to it. "Cleo!" he cheered, his eyes big with excitement over the sight of his best friend.

Gorgan stretched his little hands out toward Cleo, who giggled in response. "Gorgan!" she greeted back.

The female youngling also mounted the shoulders of her kind-spirited father, who typically didn't join the warriors unless it involved training only. Morisol held his daughter's scaly hands above his head to play with her by initiating a sense of flight.

Two females came right after, completing the standard group from this nesting area. "Let'sss regroup with Ssslithraa ssso the ressst can arrive," a warrior directed.

With that plan in mind, their group lined up and made their way through the vast passageways of the tunnel. The three younglings gazed around at the familiar shapes of the icy formations all around them. Three separate small entrances covered the wall to their right, giving way to rooms they were all familiar with. Their mothers carried them through here every day to go to at least one of them, and none of them were too far away from any of the three nesting areas, either.

The place they were all taken, however, was very foreign to them. It was so expansive that every sound echoed. Serpentine were all over the place, being divided into different groups for hunting and training. The stiff icicles along the unreachable ceiling remained undisturbed by the activity.

Soren and Gorgan followed the others to General Slithraa, who stood erect on a minor ledge with his authoritative golden staff in hand. The younglings viewed his massive tail that dangled off the side threateningly. Skales admired him, probably because his parents told him about him before today, but Gorgan and Cleo were unsure how to feel. When Slithraa noticed them all, his stone-like expression softened. "Ah, yesss. The firssst younglingsss," he hissed, joyfully raising his staff. "Pleassse wait for the othersss. Asss for the ressst of you, pleassse go sssharpen your ssskillsss with training."

"Yesss, General," they all firmly atoned, following their orders.

Gorgan, Cleo, Skales, and their fathers stepped aside to wait. None of the younglings has ever met others like them. How many could there be? Meanwhile, their fathers conversed with one another. They knew who was to be expected, and they planned to stay together so that their offspring could share the experiences. They would be around each other every day for the years to come as they learned mentally and physically, so this was a good head start for the time being.

As the minutes ticked by, more bulky males appeared with their younglings mounted on their shoulders. Gorgan met all of them: Selma, a female who seemed nervous to be around others like her, Mezmo, a male who earned his name after hypnotizing his mother at birth, Rattla, a male who could purposefully emit a peculiar sound from his throat, Chunk, a male with a slow learning capacity, Miraj, a female whose crimson eyes had doubled rings in them, Vovabi, a female who shied away from strangers, and Amica and Briar, a set of twins who learned how to both perch themselves on a single pair of shoulders.

Gorgan was surrounded by younglings who were just like him. Each was well-behaved and had their own personality. He wanted to befriend all of them!

Slithraa dismounted from his ledge once all Hypnobrai we're given a directive. Gorgan nervously grasped the sides of Soren's serpent head. The General of the tribe was so big compared to the ordinary warriors. His muscular stature towered above anyone who crossed his path as his long, thick tail trailed behind him. It was an intimidating sight for most of the younglings. Only their parents spoke of him. His body communicated fright, but his welcoming crimson eyes told a different story.

"Take your offssspring around. Let them have a look around," he kindly prompted as he slithered past them.

Soren and Morisol both made eye contact. Their younglings gravitated toward each other. Elapidae always told him about how Gorgan would only play with Skales if he got to see Cleo afterward, and sometimes Velsuki would watch Gorgan while Elapidae visited her friends. If they were to keep the two apart today, it would almost be a crime.

"Well, thisss isss the gathering place," Soren told his son, turning around so he could view it in its entirety. This was where the tribe came to celebrate the birth of younglings or to learn about what has been occurring in the tribe.

"What'sss that?" Cleo asked Morisol, pointing to something Gorgan couldn't see.

"What'sss what?" Morisol played, reverting around to face the complete opposite direction.

"That!" Cleo persisted, twisting her body to point again.

"Oh! The ritual pool," Morisol named, turning back around and leading the way for everyone else. Soren slightly leaned forward so Gorgan could gaze down at the shallow pool of still water. "All younglingsss are placcced in the water for good fortune after they are born."

"Why isssn't it frozen?" Mezmo questioned, trying to get his father's attention by poking at his eye.

"Nobody knowsss. Ssstop," his father deterred, clasping his small hand.

"Ssslither Pit!" Chunk exclaimed, noticing the dormant engravings etched in the reflective ice-laden floor.

"Yesss, very good, ssson," his father applauded. "You've been listttening closssely."

The snakes all walked over to the circle that took up most of the space in the very center of the room. "The older younglingsss ssshould be here ssshortly for their combat training," Rattla's father informed them.

"We can sssee more in the training area," Miraj's father hissed, already headed that way.

The others followed him without any complaints. Gorgan curiously gazed around at his surroundings, but the thought of observing older younglings excited him. He had never seen what training was all about.

Everyone halted when Briar and Amica began laughing. The twins' father had turned to look at the wall, and the reflection that responded was quite the caricature. The wall's unique shape with the ice forever freezing the way it did created mirrored images that manipulated what was in front of them. His two younglings appeared to be fused to his head, complete with eyes of exaggerated size and snouts that were cut short.

The rest of the younglings wanted to try it, too, of course. Soren and Morisol brought over Gorgan and Cleo so they could also be involved. Both of them moved and changed their facial expressions to make the other laugh. Their fathers also joined in on the fun, enjoying it just as much as their offspring. The sound of their laughter sparked a sense of happiness in both of them. These were moments that made fatherhood a worthwhile experience.

"Come gather around, young onesss!" a voice called from down the split corridor.

"Sssoundsss like it'sss ssstory time," Selma's father translated, leading the way to the fork in the road. The left led to where younglings learned stories and fables, and the right led to where younglings trained in preparation for combat training, which would last until they were no longer considered younglings at all.

The group strolled into the room to find younglings a few years older sitting around a female elder named Tijakas. Sketches covered the wall of stone behind her, depicting history of the Serpentine species and helpful stories that taught valuable lessons. Every youngling was more than intrigued when Tijakas pointed at a series of related etches and mentioned a story all the fathers had heard before.

"Sssomeday you will learn from Tijakasss, too," Soren told his son.

"Did you?" he wondered, bending over to lay on top of the flat section of his head.

"Yesss, and ssso did your mother and all the other warriorsss in the tribe. Ssshe isss very wissse."

"Who remembersss the tale of Roli the little ssscout?" Tijakas asked, using the tips of her bony fingers to dig out the dirt that settled into the divots since she last spoke of it. "We have the new younglingsss here to visssit."

A big part of the younglings raised their hands in hopes of being chosen. Tijakas pointed to a male and asked for him to stand up and tell the story aloud.

Skales squirmed to be put down so he couldn't go sit with the older younglings and listen. Others followed suit, including Gorgan and Cleo, but those two decided to sit in the very back together. The fathers remained standing to watch. The eagerness to learn at such a young age was surprising but also a promising sight.

"Let them hear the ssstory," Morisol said. "The training area will be more interesssting to watch."

* * *

When the story of Roli was over, Tijakas said goodbye to the younglings so she could continue to tell more stories to her regular group. Soren and Morisol picked up Gorgan and Cleo so they could tag along with the others once more.

Coming back to the split, the group ventured over to the right side, where noise abounded. Even older younglings followed orders as they all completed an obstacle course that tested endurance, agility, and perseverance. Gorgan was intimidated by all the activity. Three warriors — two males and one female — called out orders in different parts. The sculpted formations of the course had things they could climb under, over, and through. In between them, they had to run and jump over mounds of ice. Anyone who tripped or became too weary to continue had to stand in the center.

"Uh..." Cleo trailed, slightly overwhelmed.

Morisol comfortably stroked his hands against her back and kept them there to stretch his upper body for a moment. "Don't worry, Sssprout. It will be ten yearsss before you ssstart training. You're too little right now—"

"RAT!" the female warrior bellowed, pointing at the wall.

Every youngling stopped whatever they were doing to hurry over to the wall. The brown rodent writhed free from a dark crevice between the wall and floor and scampered away. Younglings lunged for it in a craze. Whoever caught and killed it won bragging rights and an early meal.

"Got it!" a female announced, holding up her dead prize.

"Well done," the bigger male warrior congratulated. "Eat up."

"Alright, get back to work," the female warrior told the rest. "Ssshow thessse younglingsss how it'sss done."

They lol unhesitatingly went straight back to where they left off. Skales begged his father to let him try the obstacle course just one time, but he said he wasn't big enough yet. Gorgan watched every part there was to see with an uneasy feeling thing itself in knots inside his stomach. It looked so demanding and hard. If this was what it took to become a hypnobrai warrior, he didn't know if he wanted to go through with it.

"I'm ssscared," Chuck whined, cowering against his father with his face hidden away.

"Perhapsss it'sss time to go back," Mezmo's father suggested.

"What do _you_ think we ssshould do?" Soren questioned his son, pulling him off his shoulders upside down.

Gorgan giggled as his father bounced him up and down until he corrected his positioning and snuggled him. "Go back," he claimed.

Soren turned around to see that the rest of the group left them behind. Gorgan was laid across his father's face (butt on his snout and the rest laying on his head) and they both caught up to the group. He glanced up to see the ceiling transform into a meadow of gorgeous icicles that came in all shapes and sizes. Some were long and skinny and others were short and fat. It looked as if there was a period of rapid melting of the ice, but then it all suddenly froze into place.

When they passed back through the mirrored corridor, the gathering place was even busier. The oldest of the younglings were making use of the Slither Pit for combat training. Warriors scattered the area to observe and correct technique for each pair that took the center of the floor.

But the smaller younglings disregarded the sounds of clashing weapons of ice. They were all looking at the growing pile of prey with empty tummies.

"Food..." Amica softly endorsed.

All the fathers noticed the lack of interest in the combat training. They prey pile was still in the making, but it was indeed the time when the mothers fed them. They had seen everything that they hadn't already. It was a good time for a break. Afterward, they could go wherever they wanted to participate or watch.

They brought their offspring over and picked out a piece that was just small enough for them. Gorgan sat in Soren's lap as he chewed off morsels of his rat. The two had never spent too much time together. Soren tapped his nose against his head until he looked up. Their snouts rubbed affectionately. Neither of them wanted this day to end.

 **Soren is a good dad :) Or is he? Thank you AuroraRain18, Melodie Wolfe, and RandomDragon2.0 for leaving a review :D**


	6. Chapter 5: The Human Race

**==Hi, everyone! I'm back from Hawaii! We had so much fun these past two weeks, but I'm glad to be home. To make things better, I got three chapters written! But because we just got back yesterday, I had to take the time to transcribe them onto the computer. That means I'm all caught up on updates! So enjoy these next three chapters as I post them throughout the week. I worked hard on them in my spare time :) ==**

Arkasia - "Pandemonium"

 **Collateral Damage**

 **Chapter 5:**

 **The Human Race**

 _That day Gorgan spent with_ his father followed him as he grew older. What all they saw was unable to be retained as a memory because of how young he was, but the bond he shared with Soren never faded since then. Now he was no longer a small youngling who remained in the nest every day with Elapidae. Now he was developing into juvenile who could finally begin the process of becoming a warrior. The process would take years to complete, but all juveniles didn't have to do any physical training yet. It all started with cognitive recollection; they had to learn important stories and lessons that would influence how they responded to events in real life.

What also made the momentous occasion special was that Elapidae could return to warrior duties. Her days of being confined to the nest all day every day with her dependent offspring were over. She was more than delighted to spend more time with her mate while Gorgan was attending his storytelling sessions. It had almost been too long since they last had some alone time. When they found out they were expecting Gorgan, she had to halt her routines once her abdomen reached a certain size. After that, she was busy being a mother.

On that fateful day, Soren and Elapidae observed how their only son eagerly stared across the room at the ominous medicine den. With his permanent fangs beginning to poke out from beneath his lip, he waited for Cleo to emerge from the darkness. The two of them were always together. Now they were going to be learning together! But he didn't understand what was taking her so long. Velsuki must've been pampering her because it was the very first day.

"Gorgan," Soren spoke, making his son turn around to look at him respectively, "are you excccited to hear the ssstoriesss of your ancccessstorsss today?"

He nodded and gazed back toward the medicine den. Just as he did, Cleo's four brothers exited the medicine den and headed out of the nesting area. Each had a gap in age differences, but none of them were warriors yet. Cleo was the baby of her family; the youngest of her older brothers was developing into an adolescent while she was just becoming a juvenile.

Velsuki and Morisol stepped out while holding their daughter's hands. She had yellow scales that were beginning to form swirls on each side of her head and crimson eyes that were already hypnotizing snakes by accident. Their eyes locked, and she called for him to come with her. Gorgan desperately gazed at his reptilian parents with high hopes of getting permission to leave. His mother chuckled and motioned for him to go ahead. He then jumped out and ran as fast as he could to meet up with his best friend.

Cleo broke away from her parents, causing their hands to be yanked. "Be careful!" Velsuki shouted as Gorgan rushed by.

She looked over her shoulder to see him right at her tail. "You can't catch me!" she teased, picking up the pace so that she was out of reach.

"Can too!" he challenged, chasing her through the Tomb's large tunnel and into the gathering place. Warriors had to suddenly avoid them as they persisted to dodge any obstacles. As she drew the path for them through the gathering place and into the splitting corridor, he focused on stretching his scaly hands out to her back. If only he could just lay a finger on her, he could claim victory.

"Ha! I win!" Cleo declared, hopping to a stop at the mouth of the learning place.

"No, you didn't!" Gorgan argued, playfully slapping her chest. "I win. Ha!"

"How?"

"You weren't _in_ the learning place."

She craned her neck to get every angle of where they were standing and groaned in annoyance. "Not fair."

"Hello, Gorgan and Cleo!" a female hypnobrai greeted from a distance.

The two juveniles both glanced over to see the elder responsible for teaching all Serpentine their age. They were unaware of this, but many years ago, they had met her and heard one of her stories. They remembered being with their fathers, but everything else was long forgotten. But regardless of their lack of memory, the elder waved them over to join others who had already arrived.

Cleo gave her friend a timid look. How the heck did she know their names? More importantly, who was she? Morisol had told her about what would happen today, but he didn't disclose anything else.

"Don't be ssshy. We're jussst congregating at the moment," the elder coaxed, being as friendly as possible.

The three juveniles who were already there watched them approach the semicircle to sit down with them. None of them said anything - probably because they were also nervous to be in a new environment that was different from a nest. The fact that they were without their parents was another factor in their current docile behavior.

"Did you come without your parentsss?" she questioned.

It took them a second to respond in agreement.

"How brave of you!" she praised. "It'sss good that you know your way around the Tomb already. You can ssstart becoming leadersss at a young age."

Gorgan let out a coy smile that exposed his stubby fangs a little bit farther. Getting affirmed on the first day was a good accolade to tell his parents about.

* * *

A few minutes later, more juveniles showed up with their parents as an entourage. The elder welcomed every single one of them with their names intact. Like the elder, Gorgan and Cleo had met them all before, but they didn't remember any of them. Their names didn't ring a bell for either of them. Once there were eleven in total sitting around her rock in a semicircle, she began to speak to them all. "Welcome to your firssst day of ssstorytelling," she happily hissed. "I am Tijakasss, the ssstorytelling elder. I know your namesss, but how about you introduccce yourssselvesss to your new peersss. Doesss anybody know anyone already?"

"I know Gorgan!" Cleo gladly exclaimed, holding him in a tight embrace.

"Good friendsss, I sssee," she chuckled. "Can you tell usss sssomething about him?"

"Um...He isss the only youngling in hisss family, and we like to play outssside of my mother'sss den while ssshe preparesss herbsss with my father."

"Very interesssting! What about you, Gorgan? Can you tell usss sssomething about Cleo?"

"Ssshe hasss four brothersss and her mother is the tribe's medicine snake," he easily depicted. "We've been friendsss for a long time."

"Aw, well I hope you both continue being friendsss asss you go through your warrior training."

"I alssso know Gorgan," Skales added.

Gorgan glanced over at him. Their mothers were good friends, but they couldn't really get along. He was never interested in playing with Skales because of the way he played. It was always rough and intentionally mean.

"I like to sssit on him," he admitted carelessly and devilishly.

The juveniles around Gorgan laughed at the comment, making him feel insecure.

"That'sss not very niccce," Tijakas lightheartedly told Skales. "We will not be sssitting on anyone when we're here."

Skales stuck his forked tongue out at Gorgan to get a reaction from him.

"Ssskalesss isss mean to me," Gorgan shared, narrowing his eyes at him.

"Don't worry, Gorgan. The ssstoriesss will help guide everyone in a posssitive directttion. When you all begin ssscout training, your persssonalitiesss and habitsss and interessstsss will completely alter so that you will become a great warrior. I promissse you."

He went quiet. It seemed impossible right now, but he hoped it would be a reality someday. Dealing with a bully wasn't on his agenda.

* * *

Tijakas got to know each of her new pupils through the personal introductions, and then decided to tell a tale. But this tale was an important history lesson.

"Doesss anyone know why we live in the Tomb?" she asked, getting up from her rock to acknowledge the stone wall that was covered in engraved images. The juveniles looked around in anticipation of someone chipping in their knowledge of the subject, but when nobody did, Tijakas pointed at an image and explained. "Many yearsss ago, an alien creature known as the Firssst Ssspinjitzu Massster, a human, created the Hypnobrai tribe along with four othersss. Our tribe hasss the power of hypnosssisss, the Fangpyre tribe hasss the power of transssforming anything into a ssserpent, the Conssstrictai tribe hasss the power of great ssstrength, the Venomari tribe hasss the power of causssing hallucccinatttionsss, and the Anacondrai tribe hasss the power of camouflaging into any kind of sssurroundingsss. Together, we are the Ssserpentine, and we were created to protect the land of Ninjago from an evil threat known asss the Golden Massster. The Golden Massster wanted the Firssst Ssspinjitzu Massster's powersss, and hisss sssuccccessss would lead to a massss apocalypssse of the world.

"When the Ssserpentine feared the imminent reign of the Golden Massster, they tried to warn the human raccce and get them underground in their Tombsss to protect them, but they rebelled and viewed our kind asss monssstersss. A great war broke out, sssending all of Ninjago into chaosss.

"Eighteen yearsss ago, the Hypnobrai tribe wasss outssside of the Tomb in peaccce. Your parentsss were jussst juvenilesss like you at the time. A human appeared with a weapon that could pierccce the inner earsss of ssserpents to put them in a controlled tranccce. The entire tribe wasss then moved inssside the Tomb, where it wasss then ssshut from the outssside. We were all trapped sssince that tragic day, unable to ssstep foot on the land above ever again.

"The humansss believed that locking usss away would end the war onccce and for all. What they didn't know, however, wasss that we could sssurvive in our Tomb without accccessss to Ninjago. Your generation isss one of the firssst to have never ssseen Ninjago; your entire livesss have been inssside the Tomb." She stopped when Mezmo sheepishly raised his hand. "Yesss, Mezmo?"

"Will we ever get out?"

"There isss alwaysss hope that sssomething will happen unexpectedly and releassse us, but it isss impossssible to open the Tomb from the inssside. But don't fret. The Hypnobrai have survived jussst fine underground. Thossse rancccid humansss will _never_ dessstroy usss. We are Serpentine!"

"But who _was_ ss the human that locked usss in the Tomb?" Cleo asked.

"Ssshe was a female with yellow fur who wore blue garmentsss to cover her body. It wasss the Elemental Massster of Lightning who tried to kill usss."

 **I'll try to get the next chapter up tomorrow, but go ahead and review! Thank you EchoIsACutie for favoriting this story and thank you ZaneLoverFan88, Melodie in My Heart, The Mayor of Ninjago City, and RandomDragon2.0 for reviewing :)**

The Mayor of Ninjago City \- Oh, I didn't even realize I posted that chapter on Father's Day weekend XD How conveinant!

RandomDragon2.0 \- Aw, thank you :)


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